Simulated golf game with direction indicating target



Nov. 29, 1966 D. J. RUDOLPH 3,28,467

SIMULATED GOLF GAME WITH DIRECTION INDIGATING TARGET Filed Nov. 1, 1965 2 Sheets$heet l INVENTOR.

DONALD J. RUDOLPH ATTORNEY 1966 D. J. RUDOLPH SIMULATED GOLF GAME WITH DIRECTION INDIGATING TARGET 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 1, 1965 INVENTOR. DONALD J. RUDOLPH ATTORNEY United States Patent M 3,288,467 SIMULATED GOLF GAME WITH DIRECTION INDIQATING TARGET Donald J. Rudolph, Edison, N.J., assignor to Rudek, Inc, a corporation of New Jersey Filed Nov. 1, 1963, Ser. No. 320,684 7 Claims. (Cl. 27387.4)

This invention relates to a mechanical golf game and particularly to a game of skill for simulating the driving of a golf ball from a tee.

It is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved golf game.

Another object is to provide a new and improved golf game which tests the skill of an operator.

Another object is to provide a new and improved golf game that is suitable for scoring and competitive play.

In accordance with an embodiment of this invention, a game board is provided with a horizontal driving platform and a ball supporting tee is mounted for adjustable movement along an axis perpendicular to the platform. A driving target panel is positioned remotely from the tee and generally perpendicular to the platform and to a path of the ball as it is driven from the tee. A player figure that carries a golf club is mounted on the board adjacent to the tee for rotation about an axis perpendicular to the board with the path of rotation of the head of the golf club passing over the tee. The figure is adjustably mounted so that its axis of rotation is changeable forward and back along the path of the ball. The adjustment of the golfer determines the angle of the path of drive of the ball from the tee, whether it is a slice or a hook or straight down the fairway to the target. The target is formed as a plurality of individual target panels that indicate both the direction of path of the drive as well as its height. The adjustment of the tee determines the height of the drive. Manipulating controls permit an operator to make any desired adjustment and to actuate the figure to drive the ball.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention, the features thereof as well as the invention itself, may be more fully understood from the following description when read together with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation View of a golf game embodying this invention;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of the golf game of FIG. 1 as viewed along the line 22 thereof;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view from the line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged bottom plan view, with the cover removed as seen from the line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged sectional view of a target unit taken on the line 5-5 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line 66 of FIG. 4, with parts removed and in section, and viewed with the topside up;

FIG. 7 is a detailed sectional view taken on the line 77 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged detailed sectional view taken on the line 88 of FIG. 4, and viewed with the topside up; and

FIG. 9 is a schematic circuit diagram of a portion of the circuitry of the indicator panel shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

In the drawing corresponding parts are referenced throughout by similar numerals.

The embodiment of the golf game invention shown in the drawing includes a base and assembly frame 18 having removable rear and bottom cover panels 12 and 14, respectively. Attached to the bottom panel 14 are four corner posts 16 and 18 that support the base on a table or the like in generally horizontal orientation. On

3,288,467 Patented Nov. 29, 1966 the upper surface of the base 10 is a horizontal teeing platform 20, on which is mounted a player figure 22 with inclined head 24 in driving stance and holding a golf club 26 adapted for movement over a tee 28.

A driving target 30 is remotely positioned from the tee 28 and is mounted in a vertical plane generally perpendicular to the line of drive of a ball from the tee 28 (as seen in FIG. 2). Transparent plastic side panels 32 are fastened to the base 10 and to a vertical target supporting frame 33 and to an overhanging canopy 34 to prevent ricocheting balls from leaving the game board. A platform 36, attached to the upper surface of the base 10 and corresponding to the fairway section of a golf course, is inclined downwards from the target 30 towards the player 22 and from the left thereof to the right corner (as viewed by an operator of the game), which inclination is indicated by the arrows 38 and 40, respectively. This inclined platform 36 functions as a ball return after a driven ball has hit the target 30.

As seen in FIG. 8 the player figure 22 is supported on a pedestal 42 having an axially depending cylindrical shaft 44 which passes through a block 46 and is rotatably secured thereto by a washer 48. Threaded through the block 46, offset from the shaft 44 and at right angles thereto, is an adjustment screw 50. The screw 50 is journaled at the outer end in the base 10 and at the inner end in an internal frame portion 52 used for supporting the mechanisms. At the outer end of the adjustment screw is a knob 54 that is rotated by an operator to adjust the block 46 forward and back and correspondingly change the position of the shaft 44. A slot 56 in the tee ofif platform 20 accommodates this movement of the shaft 44. Nuts 58 threaded on the screw 50 function as adjustable stops, against which the block 46 bears in its limit positions to prevent binding of the shaft 44 against the ends of the slot 56.

Fastened to the washer 48 is a link 60 that is pivotally secured at its opposite end to one end of a link 62, the other end of which is pivoted to a bell crank 64 which is supported by and rotates about a pivot pin 66 fixed to the platform 20. The other arm of the bell crank 64 has a slot 68 extending therealong in which a plin 70 slides. The pin is secured to the bell crank 64 by means of its head at one end thereof and a block 74 at the other end, to which it is fastened. Fixed to the block 74 and offset from the pin 70 is an actuator rod 76 which is slidably mounted within the base 10 and has a control knob 78 at the outer end thereof. A coiled compression spring 82 surrounds the actuator rod 76 and bears between the block 74 and the base 10 and biases the block in the direction shown by the arrow 84.

When the knob 78 is pulled out, the actuator block 74 rotates the bell crank 64 to move the links 62 and 60 and rotate the pedestal shaft 44 and the player figure 22. The golf club 26, fixed to the figure 22, is rotated to the position 86 (FIG. 3) by pulling the knob 78 to its outermost position; when the knob 78 is released, the compressed spring 82 drives the actuator block and drives the player 22 and golf club 26 in the opposite direction to the follow-through position 88. As the player rotates from the position 86 to the position 88, it passes through the position shown in FIG. 3, which occurs just before the club strikes the ball. The headed pin 7 t is preferably provided with a roller bearing or rotatable bushing that rides in the slot 68 to provide a good bearing surface.

The ball return and feed to the tee 28 is from the corner of the inclined board at the arrows 38 and 40 (FIG. 3) via an inclined tube 90 (FIGS. 3 and 6) which carries the returned balls to a tee actuator and ball supply mechanism 92. The latter includes a tube 93 into which the ball return tube 90 feeds, and the tube 93 carries a coil spring 94 that biases upwardly a cylindrical bushing that functions as the tee 28, and which has a small depression 96 in the upper surface for centering a ball in tee off position. A pin 98 fixed to the tee bushing 28 extends through a slot 100 in the tube 93 and is engaged outside of the tube by a hook 102 on the end of a lever 104 that is pivoted at its opposite end to a block 106 attached to the frame 10. A bent lever 108 is pivoted at one end to a projection on the frame 52 and has an intermediate notch 110 that engages the top edge of lever 104 at a cross-over point. The other end of lever 108 extends through the frame and has a finger-engaging knob 112 at its outer end.

An adjustment screw 114 threaded through the base has a knob 116 at one end and a stop plate 118 at the other. The stop plate 118 is adjusted vertically by the knob 116, and it serves to position the lever 108 when it travels upward under the bias of spring 94. In its lower travel, the lever 108 engages a switch 120 which is connected in circuit with the target as described below.

When the lever 108 is actuated downwardly by manipulation of the finger knob 112, the lever 104 is also pivoted downwardly, and the hook 102 on the end thereof pulls the pin 98 and the tee bushing 28 downwardly with it. At

the end of the full travel downward of the lever 108', the top surface of the tee 28 clears the mouth of the tube 90 to permit a ball to gravitate into the tube 93. The release of the lever 108 permits the spring 94 to return the tee bushing 28 to its normal position approximately fiush with the surface of the teeing platform 20. The final position of the tee 28, either slightly below the tee off platform 20 or slightly above, is determined by the setting of the adjustment screw 114 which determines the stop position of the lever 108, and thereby of the tee 28. Thus, by rotating the tee adjustment screw 114, an ultimate position of the tee 28 is determined, and the tee can be positioned upwardly or downwardly within a substantial range which determines, in part, the height of the driven ball.

The target 30 includes a plurality of panels 120 (nine are shown in FIG. 2), and each panel is mounted independently and provides an indication when struck by a driven ball. Scoring numbers are marked on the panels either in values as shown or in successive numeration, or in any appropriate manner.

As shown in FIG. 5, each panel 120 is a plastic plate mounted on three pins 122, 124, 126, each of which carries a coil spring biasing the panel outwardly in a threepoint suspension to a normal position, in which all of the panels 120 lie in the same plane. Each panel 120 acts as a switch actuator and is also transparent, A separate light 128, carried by the backboard 33 behind each panel, is lighted when its associated panel is struck and indicates thereby which panel section was hit by the driven ball.

A spring contact 130 (FIGS. 5 and 9) completes a circuit to a fixed contact 132 when its associated panel 120 is moved by a driven ball. This completes a circuit to a solenoid 134 as well as to the lamp 128 connected in series and across common lines 135, 136 to terminals of a power supply shown representationally as a battery 138 (the conventional 110 volt power lines may also be used). The circuit for a column of three such panels is shown in FIG. 9, and the other two columns of three panels each would have similar circuits connected in parallel to the common lines 135 and 136, FIG, 9. Connected in series between the power source 138 and the common line 136 to all of the lamp and solenoid circuits is the normally closed switch 120 (FIG. 6) which is actuated by the depression of the lever 108' in the direction shown by the arrow. Thus, when the lever 108 is depressed to feed a ball, the switch 120 is opened to turn off any lamp that is then lighted.

In operation, when any panel 120 is struck, the circuit between the associated contacts 130 and 132 is closed to energize the lamp 128 and the solenoid 134 in series.

The solenoid retains the contact 130 in switch closing position to maintain its associated lamp 128 in lighted condition until the switch is opened.

In this mode of operation, each time a ball is fed the lamp or lamps that are lighted are extinguished. Each player has one turn to drive a ball alternatingly with the other players. An alternative mode of operation is available in which a plurality of balls are supplied to be hit successively by a player. For example, the game of skill is one requiring the player to hit each of the panels, and if desired, each of the panels in a certain order. After the player has attempted to hit all of the panels and has used all of the supply of balls, the next player starts his operation. In this mode, the switch is not actuated by the lever 108, but is otherwise manually accessible so that the next player can extinguish all of the lighted panels when his turn is reached.

This game is effective as a game of skill and tends to simulate various features of golf associated with driving from a tee. The head of the golf club may take various forms, though a general striking surface has been found to be suitable. The forward and back adjustment of the golfer figure 22 determines the direction of drive of the ball, and the operator of the game can produce a slice or a hook or a straight drive. The adjustment of the tee up or down determines the height of the drive. With the tee high, the ball is hit on a low drive, while with the tee low, the ball is hit high, The above mentioned adjustments are modified in their effect by the different plunger positions which determine the amount of swing of the golfer by determining th compression of the actuator spring 82. Thereby, the force delivered to the ball by the swinging golf club can be made to vary. Each player is required to select his own set of related adjustments among the many possible ones determined by the tee height adjustment, the forward and rear adjustment of the axis of swing, and the variation in driving force. Thus, the skill of a player is challenged in selecting the correct combination of adjustments that will result in the desired direction and height of drive. The vertically oriented target is important in its association with the aforementioned adjustments in that it determines the type of drive that is actually achieved. The height and direction if a driven ball is effectively measured by such a vertically oriented target panel. The figure adjustment does not interfere with the driving of the figure and a simple linkage is provided to permit both. Moreover, the starting and finishing positions 86 and 88 vary depending on the figure adjustment. In addition, due to the driving force being depending on the spring compression as well as on the distance moved by the club before striking the ball, the skill of a player is taxed to make the right adjustment to hit any selected target panel.

Thus, in accordance with this invention, a new and improved golf game is provided. A large variety of related adjustments is provided to test the skill of a player, and his interest is maintained.

Various modifications witihn the spirit of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, the golf club of the figure may be made to be vertically adjustable instead of the tee; the figure may be driven directly by a suitable linkage instead of by a compressed spring. The invention itself is defined in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A golf game comprising a game board platform, a ball supporting tee adjustably movable along an axis perpendicular to said platform, a game target panel positioned remotely from said tee and generally perpendicularly to said platform and to a path of a ball from said tee, a player figure carrying a golf club, and means mounting said figure and club on said platform adjacent to said tee for rotation about an axis perpendicular to said platform with the path of rotation of the head of said club passing over said tee, said figure mounting means including a pedestal and a depending shaft, and means for adjusting said rotation axis forward and back generally parallel to said ball path, said adjusting means including a member rotatably supporting said shaft, and an adjustment screw for moving said member at right angles to the axis of said shaft.

2. A golf game as recited in claim 1 and further comprising means for rotating said figure about said axis including means linked to said shaft for effecting rotation thereof.

3. A golf game as recited in claim 2 wherein said rotation effecting means includes a movable member and a manually and selectively compressible spring connected to said member, said rotation axis adjusting means including a member pivotally connected at one end to said shaft and connected at its other end to said movable member and adapted for assuming different normal positions with different positions of adjustment of said shaft supporting member.

4. A golf game comprising a game board platform, a ball supporting tee adjustably movable along an axis perpendicular to said platform, and means including an adjustable knob for adjusting the height of said tee with respect to said knob, a game target panel positioned remotely from said tee and generally perpendicularly to said platform and to a path of a ball from said tee, a figure including a golf club, means mounting said figure and club on said platform adjacent to said tee f-or rotation about an axis perpendicular to said platform with the path of rotation of the head of said club passing over said tee, said figure mounting means including means for adjusting said rotation axis forward and back generally parallel to said ball path.

5. A golf game as recited in claim 4 wherein said tee is 'slidable within a ball feeding tube, a lever linked to said tee for moving it down within said tube, and adjustable means limiting the return position of said lever.

6. A golf game as recited in claim 5 wherein said tee adjusting means includes a spring mounted within said tube and biasing said tee upwardly and said lever to its return position.

7. A golf game comprising a game board, a ball supporting tee adjustably movable along an axis perpendicular to said board, a game target positioned remotely from said tee and generally perpendicularly to said board and to a path of a ball from said tee, said target including a plurality of individual panels mounted substantially in a plane and distinctively positioned in two coordinates to mark the points of striking of balls driven with different heights and in diiferent directions, a figure including a golf club, means mounting said figure and club on said board adjacent to said tee for rotation about an axis perpendicular to said board with the path of rotation of the head of said club passing over said tee, said figure mounting means including means for adjusting said rotation axis forward and back generally parallel to said ball path, said panels being transparent and mounted in rows and columns, and said target further including a plurality of lamps individually mounted behind said panels, a plurality of switches individually mounted behind said panels and actuatable by movement of said panels, three-point spring suspensions for said panels to permit movement of each thereof when struck by a ball at any point, and individual holding circuit means for each of said panels energized with the associated lamp upon the actuation of the associated switch to maintain the associated lamp lighted, manually operable means for adjusting the height of said tee, manually operable means for feeding balls to said tee, and a switch operable by said ball feeding means for opening said holding circuits.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,636,117 7/1927 Arden 273-87.4 1,657,388 12/1928 Gorman 273--87.4 1,869,842 8/1932 Chester 273-874 2,040,228 5/1936 Whitely 273102.2 2,775,457 12/1956 Galbos 27389 3,072,406 1/1963 Yee 27387.4

DELBERT B. LOWE, Primary Examiner.

ANTON O. OECHSLE, Examiner.

M. R. PAGE, Assistant Examiner. 

4. A GOLF GAME COMPRISING A GAME BOARD PLATFORM, A BALL SUPPORTING TEE ADJUSTABLY MOVABLE ALONG AN AXIS PERPENDICULAR TO SAID PLATFORM, AND MEANS INCLUDING AN ADJUSTABLE KNOB FOR ADJUSTING THE HEIGHT OF SAID TEE WITH RESPECT TO SAID KNOB, A GAME TARGET PANEL POSITIONED REMOTELY FROM SAID TEE AND GENERALLY PERPENDICULARLY TO SAID PLATFORM AND TO A PATH OF A BALL FROM SAID TEE, A FIGURE INCLUDING A GOLF CLUB, MEANS MOUNTING SAID FIGURE AND CLUB ON SAID PLATFORM ADJACENT TO SAID TEE FOR ROTATION ABOUT AN AXIS PERPENDICULAR TO SAID PLATFORM WITH THE PATH OF ROTATION OF THE HEAD OF SAID CLUB PASSING OVER SAID TEE, SAID FIGURE MOUNTING MEANS INCLUDING MEANS FOR ADJUSTING SAID ROTATION AXIS FORWARD AND BACK GENERALLY PARALLEL TO SAID BALL PATH. 